And then they called me at Midnight

[Tait, MSN, RN]

I work nights, always have, and until I choose a new path, such as patient education, I probably always will. It is my favorite shift.

That being said, one tiny part of the culture that I find interesting is the respect for time.

Today I was awoken at 1210 to be asked about a Lovenox shot I hadn't charted. Now I will give her points that she looked in the PIXIS and saw that I had cancelled the pull...the first pull which was a double check on the pocket because PIXIS was being weird at the time.

So basically she woke me up at ten after midnight on my schedule to ask about a prophylactic shot being given to a patient most likely going home after her stress test.

At other times I have been called at 1030, then again at 1300 to come in early and cover shifts before I am due to work for the night.

Now I understand we don't generally have to call people in at 3am to work, but if I even so much as ring a phone to call someone off for the day before 0500 all magical Hades breaks loose.

It is just one of the interesting quirks of working night shift.

Tait

[caliotter3]

Just this morning I was asked to call back later in the day to speak to the nursing supervisor when I called, (half an hour after I arrived home following an hour and a half commute from my night shift that ended 10 minutes late while I waited for the client family member to sign my time card) concerning something regarding the client that needed follow-up.

[Tait, MSN, RN]

At least my manager has learned if she needs me to work she emails me and hopes for the best!

[brownbook]

I turn my phone off, they can leave a message. Our second phone, in another part of the house, is on. If I'm awake enough to hear it I can get up. If family has a serious emergency while they're at work or school they will get to an emergency room! Let teachers or neighbors or whomever might get involved know you sleep days and your phone is turned off. Police can bang on doors and windows for some real extreme emergency! I did this for 15 years, never had an issue!

[KneKno]

I've worked nights for over 20 years, and the benefits far outweight the negatives. However:

*CE offerings at noon (for the lunch time crowd)

*Food left out for nights (from that noon meeting!)--we get to clean up....

*Mandatory hospital meetings--with one 0730 meeting thrown in for nights (I'm in charge and usually have a "lighter" assignment, but seldom clock out in time to get to a meeting that is starting at 7:30)

*No cafeteria (maybe not so bad)

*"Health points" (that translate into $$) offered on healthy lunch choices (see above)

*BLS/ACLS classes (if a dayshift person's card is about to expire, arranagements are made to get them to class during their shift--imposible on nights)

[kcochrane]

The last call I got was to ask me if I noticed a bruise on a resident. My NM knows that I have no issue writing up reports for those type of things. So..I guess if I didn't write a report, I didn't notice it and this couldn't have waited? A yellowish bruise is not an emergency.

My favorite was getting a call to ask if I gave someone their Lantus. It was two hours after if was supposed to be given and I had just fell asleep. The best part was that I signed the MAR that I gave it..hello? Could you check first before you call?

[nursinger]

I've worked nights for over 20 years, and the benefits far outweight the negatives. However:

*CE offerings at noon (for the lunch time crowd)

*Food left out for nights (from that noon meeting!)--we get to clean up....

*Mandatory hospital meetings--with one 0730 meeting thrown in for nights (I'm in charge and usually have a "lighter" assignment, but seldom clock out in time to get to a meeting that is starting at 7:30)

*No cafeteria (maybe not so bad)

*"Health points" (that translate into $$) offered on healthy lunch choices (see above)

*BLS/ACLS classes (if a dayshift person's card is about to expire, arranagements are made to get them to class during their shift--imposible on nights)

OMG, don't get me started on all of this nonsense! WHy can't any classes be offered at night? Years ago when I was new to nursing, they had classes during the night shift. Now they just can't seem to have them. I can't stand the fact that I have to go to class in the middle of my night. Then when you're supposed to get OT, they don't want to pay you! Can you imagine day shift coming to class in the middle of the night???

I turn my phone off when I'm trying to sleep. The last person I want to talk to in the middle of my night is my unit manager...what a nightmare!!!!!!!!

[llg, PhD, RN]

I work in the education department. We try repeatedly to have classes, etc. during night shift ... but nobody shows up. We've tried every hour we can think of ... early in the shift, in the middle, late in the shift. We have done surveys on "when would be the best time..." etc. The night shift always says they want them during the night shift, but they don't show up when we do scheduld classes at nights.

So ... I guess we have the opposite problem at my hospital.

[feisty]

I have started telling people that I will pay them the same respect they give me. If you call me at noon with nonsense I will call you at midnight with nonsense. The last time someone called me from work to ask me to come in for a few hours for training on a new procedure I told them I had just worked 12.5 and was scheduled to come in and work the same amount in a few more hours. Also told them they needed to use their brain when considering who to offer this stuff to. Told them in the future they would receive a call while they slept if they pulled this something like this again. Really, its not rocked science people. I am normally a very easy going person and do not like conflict, but this behavior was starting to wear me down. My patients need a nurse who is able to think critically.

[tookalongtime]

My charge nurse once called me on a Sunday at 0730 to see if I would consider coming in at 1500 to 0330 that afternoon and I would not have to work my normal shift on Monday of 0300 to 1530. I told her that I would and and made sure that if I worked on Sunday I would have Monday off. She said yes that was the deal. I got home Monday at 0430 after working the Sunday shift, stayed up until 0630 when my hubby left for work, went to bed and was woken by the phone ringing. It was the staffing office wanting to know if I could come into work at 1100 that morning they were short staffed. Go figure and of course I told them no. :uhoh3::uhoh3::uhoh3:

[dthfytr, ADN, LPN, RN, EMT-B, EMT-I]

I used to work nights, and night shifts are the best. I worked 3 nights per week unless I answered the phone. There's a special place in heaven for the inventor of caller ID.

[TiffyRN, BSN, PhD]

I have worked some kind of night shift for about 20 years. For years I had my house phone in another room set on low ring and the answering machine at very low volume. People know where I live and if it's truly an emergency they can send the police out. Otherwise you will wait until I wake up. I was awakened once by the police pounding on my door as my neighbors thought they heard a commotion and were concerned as they knew I was a single lady living alone. I was fine, don't know what they heard but appreciated their concern.

I screen all calls, period. I set my phone to vibrate when I am sleeping to come to work. If I happen to be awake I can hear the vibrate setting, otherwise, it can wait.

I have witnessed several nurses call their husbands or other loved ones at 1AM to "chat" to help them understand our schedules. I don't know if I'm that mean, but I can't help but laugh.

I know some people are concerned because they have children out at day care or school. For those folks I suggest very selectively handing out my cell phone number or if your cell # is widely distributed, some phone will allow you to customize which numbers will ring versus vibrate. My work place never had my cell phone number until I completely got rid of my land line.